1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to hot water heating systems and in particular, relates to an apparatus and method of heating a ground surface or volume of air with a portable hot water heating system.
2. Description of Related Art
Cold weather climates present a variety of special problems requiring temporary heating of a ground surface or a volume of air. For example, construction of homes, buildings and other structures during the winter months must account for an air temperature below freezing for an extended period of time, on the order of two to four months. In these situations, ordinary tasks such as excavating frozen ground to build a basement can become costly and impractical. Moreover, assuming a structure is built in these conditions, temporary heating of the structure is necessary to permit workers to function comfortably within the building until a permanent heating system is installed and functioning, or to permit curing of concrete work (e.g. a basement floor) within the building.
Current solutions to these problems are undesirable because of the inadequacy and the cost of heating the ground surface or volume of air, as well as safety concerns introduced by the temporary heating solution. For example, Bruckelmyer U.S. Pat. No. 5,567,085 addresses the curing of frozen concrete by delivering a heated fluid through a hose placed next to a concrete form. The hose defines one long continuous circulation path for the heated fluid. In this method, an aggregate material is laid over the hose to retain heat radiated by the hose and to assist in the laying and setting of the concrete. However, in this method, the heated fluid is allowed to drain onto the ground and the hose is permanently left in the concrete with the ends of the hose being severed. This destruction of the hose necessarily requires that a new hose be used for each application of the method. The Bruckelmyer patent also offers no solution of how heated fluid is supplied to the hose in an efficient and environmentally safe manner.
One current method of temporary heating of a building includes the use of propane fuel burners in the building. This method, and similar approaches can create a fire hazard because of an open flame and can create an air safety hazard because of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide discharge as well as noxious fume discharge associated with these open burning propane heaters.
These examples present imperfect solutions to the challenges of cold weather construction. Accordingly, construction in cold weather slows dramatically, creates increased hazards and costs, and adds pressure on contractors to complete work in warmer weather. Given the large expanse of cold weather climates, improvements in coping with cold weather construction are highly desirable.